I started painting and drawing as early as I can remember, doing small art presentations and messing around with the visual language of abstract art. But in my 20’s I gave it up. As much as I loved it, I didn’t think it could be a career. How would I support myself? Did I really have the natural creative eye or skillset? Was I good enough? No one taught me that if you could work hard at something, especially something creative, you could succeed at it. I was never encouraged past those moments. Growing in my art wasn’t an option. What I was saying in my art didn’t - and couldn’t- matter to anyone other than me.
So I left it behind. I tried multiple careers that never felt like a fit. I kept shifting, searching for something that clicked. Then, during the pandemic, I picked it back up again. I suddenly felt what I had been missing since I had abandoned my art and tumbled back into love with it, full force.
And now I can’t do without it.